did you see what happened to Caitlyn Clark in her first WNBA playoff game she got hit in the eye by djai [Applause] Carrington now there's nothing but this wasn't just any hit it was an assault that's got everyone talking now you're probably thinking what's the big deal well let me tell you this incident is shaking up the entire WNBA where The Mention Of The the fact that the Michael Jordan of the WNBA was assaulted has a black eye during the second half of the game because D Carrington stabbed her with her fingernails in the eye
play the here's where it gets really interesting this wasn't just some random accident it happened just 2 minutes into the game and guess what no foul was called can you believe that a star player gets hit in the eye and the refs just let it slide but that's not even the craziest part this Caitlyn Clark's trying to pass the ball in the first two minutes of the game and this woman Swatch at the basketball and somehow decides to turn her hand down and her fingernails and Jab them right into the eye of Caitlyn Clark no
foul call no refs stopping the game to go look is this a flagrant none of that just everybody moved on your biggest star your meal ticket the reason why you have relevancy just got stabbed and assaulted and nothing and D has a history with Caitlyn Clark like many of these girls in the WNBA but she's at the top of the list along with uh Kennedy Carter and Chicago and Angel Reese this whole situation is uncovering some deep issues in women's basketball we're talking about player safety league rules and even some wild theories about why this
happened trust me you're going to want to stick around for this what went down with Caitlyn Clark it's way bigger than just one player getting hit now you might think a pro athlete could shake off a hit like that right wrong Caitlyn Clark uh played a terrible game shot four of 17 from the field uh the Indiana Fever got curb stomped by the Connecticut Sun uh I get it I get it she had a bad game Connecticut Sun looked good they looked experienced they brought a level of intensity and physicality that The Fever weren't ready
for but damn it in the first two minutes of this game this Deon Dean Carrington Clark's performance after the incident tells a whole different story we're talking a drop in numbers that'll make you wonder if it was even the same player on the court it wasn't it wasn't I think the performance a lot of people were hoping for to see from Caitlyn Clark in her first playoff game yeah I mean if you think back four months ago this was a very similar performance that we saw in the very first game in her rookie season Connecticut
does that to a lot of people so it really doesn't matter how good you are or how good you think you are when you're playing against Connecticut you're playing against the top defense in the league you are playing against a team that holds team to their lowest scoring who holds teams to their lowest rebounding effort they know how to really get in there and Shake It Up let's break down what happened to Kaitlyn Clark's game after that IE hit her scoring average it plummeted from a solid 20 points per game to just 11 that's not
just a small dip it's like someone flipped a switch on her scoring ability but wait it gets worse her shooting percentage it nose dive to 23.5% that's the kind of stat that makes coaches lose sleep at night but this wasn't just about Clark's individual performance the entire Indiana Fever team felt the impact imagine spending days working on game strategies only to have them all fall apart in a matter of minutes that's EX exactly what happened there's some body contact there's some um sometimes these guys are coming off off screens and movements where they're just getting
bodied um a lot I thought that was happening early I thought AB was getting um you know some not getting some calls down low that she probably should have um but at the end of the day like I you know it's not about the the officiating tonight for sure I mean we're we're uh we've got to be better defensively I mean and to the question before that the coach had to throw out their playbook and start from scratch all because of one hit to their star player you might be wondering how did Clark herself feel
about all this well she didn't hold back in her own words she said I felt like I got good shots they just didn't go down obviously a tough time for that to happen you can hear the frustration in her voice right it's not just about the physical pain it's the mental game too yeah well I felt like I like my shot felt right there that's why like it's so frustrating as a shooter like when it feels so good but it won't go down for you um that's what sucks about it but um like I said
I'm I'm proud of our team like you know we battled we fought um it wasn't pretty but you know we were right there I think we cut it to eight there with a few minutes to go in the third but then I think they came back down and maybe hit a three on us so I think it went into and let's talk about that mental game for a second Clark's usual Precision passing gone she was turning the ball over more than usual struggling to see the court clearly with her impaired Vision it's like trying to
thread a needle with one eye closed not exactly a recipe for success in a high stakes playoff game Caitlyn and she didn't shoot well and you know there was a lot of talk around her shooting she had you know her assists were good she had what eight assists 11 points but 17 shooting you know so uncharacteristic for Clark I do think the length was bothering her but look kelse Mitchell said now you might be thinking okay but she's a pro athlete shouldn't she be able to power through and that's where things get really interesting despite
everything the pain the frustration the messed up game plan Clark kept playing that's the kind of mental toughness you can't teach she was out there giving it her all even when her body wasn't cooperating lost by three and the third like we were right there and I felt like we just played a crappy game like the flow of the game was really bad um I don't know if that was the refe and that was probably partly us cuz we we struggle to get stops at times but also like the clock getting messed up was one
thing after the next but um yeah overall like it didn't bother me obviously it didn't feel too good when it happened but uh it is what of this FR on the right uh Christy and Caitlyn but here's the thing this wasn't just any game this was the playoffs the pressure was already Skyhigh and now Clark had to deal with this injury on top of everything else it's like running a marathon with a pebble in your shoe every step is a challenge just when you thought this was all about protecting star players Jason Whitlock steps in
with a take so hot it might melt your screen is there a hidden War brewing in the WNBA that nobody's talking about whitlock's not pulling any punches and his analysis is Making Waves across the Sports World can take her fake fingernails and stab them towards the eye of the woman carrying the lead the only reason they're flying private the only reason why they're drawing increased television ratings and and attendance numbers you can do whatever you want to Caitlyn Clark and no one has a word to say about [Music] it they they they canceled a football
game because Demar Hamlin got hurt so what's Whitlock saying that's got everyone buzzing he's claiming that the hit on Caitlyn Clark wasn't just a oneoff incident nope he thinks it's part of a bigger pattern in the WNBA can you imagine a league where star players are constantly under threat that's exactly what whitlock's suggesting but here's where it gets really controversial whitlock's throwing around some heavy accusations he's saying that Clark as this Rising Superstar is going to face more than just tough defense talk about the Discrimination they felt for not going along with the lgbtq stuff
talk about like the sexual gymnastics inside the locker room and the pressure and so if let's doesn't Britney grinder play in Phoenix and if Britney grinder decides she wants a taste of of uh Caitlyn Clark there's going to be hell to pay if it's not giv up I mean this is you know if you listen to the handful of heterosexual women in the wmba it's like walking into prison and somebody's going to try to make you grab a belt loop Britney grind one of these others that have been celebrated as a hero and none of
this only place you'll be able to hear this discussed is on this show it'll all be ignored the the sexual Dynamics the sexual oppression and discrimination that she'll go through will all be ignored go ahead Steve he's talking about jealousy hostility and even brace yourself racism yeah you heard that right Whitlock claims that Clark might face racism from black players in the league and it doesn't stop there Whitlock also suggests that Clark could face hostility from lesbian players because of her Catholic background if she's a Catholic which I think people think she is she is
but not outspoken Catholic it's like she's she that's sin enough she's a Catholic she she's a Catholic heterosexual she can be ripped and Destroy she she's now that's a lot to take in right it's like he's painting a picture of the WNBA as this battlefield of different identities and backgrounds this is something no one can talk about other than we'll talk about it here on this show she's going to face a level of racism from black players and she's going to face a level of hostility from lesbian players because she's not on team lgbtq she's
a Catholic she's got some boyfriend obviously generational college basketball career how do you think her game will translate to the W but why would Whitlock make these claims well he's arguing that as Clark star Rises the jealousy and hostility will only get worse it's like he's predicting a storm of negativity heading straight for Clark this has been the tradition in sports when you have a star this big that people are jealous of and people are angry at this is tell in hockey they used to try to beat up Wayne Gretzky white guy playing against a
bunch of other white guys but they knew if they could rough him up they could take the Edmonton Oilers out of their game and so they had a guy named Dave zinko who would come in and fight Gretzky's fights and make sure people pay the price for playing rough with Wayne Gretzky that's what you have to have here in the WNBA and it needs to be a black girl that has Caitlyn's back cuz if it's a white girl it's going to turn into a little race thing and the next thing you know all the race
baiters at ESPN will turn turn it into something that it's not that there's a tradition of this in sport and let's be real we've seen this kind of thing in other sports before remember how some Superstars had enforcers to protect them on the court or field and the number one thing she needs is her teammates and particularly NY Lisa Smith to do the fighting for you remember when Carmela kadosa uh and I think it was FL Johnson in the NCAA tournament someone one put hands on F and Carmela kadosa 6'7 center now plays with Chicago
s shoved the girl to the ground came right over there said not in my house kadosa playing her role they have to have that in Indiana it's not aiyah balon's job and I know she's got the size but that's not her personality that's exactly what Whitlock thinks Clark needs he's saying she needs teammates who can watch her back who can step in when things get rough because if whitlock's right things could get pretty intense out there on the court now here's a question that's got everyone talking is the wnba's culture actually encouraging this kind of
aggression towards Stars Whitlock seems to think so he's worried that if nothing changes we might see more incidents like what happened to Clark and I don't care which direction it flows if it's white against black bigotry I don't like it if it's black against white bigotry I don't like it that we have black against white bigotry here on full display people need to man up and Christian up and call it out as they see it get out of your racial idolatry get out of your fear but hold on a second before we all jump on
whitlock's bandwagon we've got to ask ourselves is he on to something here or is this just stirring up unnecessary drama are there really these deep divides in the WNBA based on race sexuality and background or is Whitlock seeing patterns that aren't really there we must protect their safety the enti you can't fight really in hockey anymore we must protect their safety you you you there are no goons in hockey anymore no Charles Oakley in basketball you can't fight in the NBA you can't play physical in the NBA you can't do what was done to Michael
Jordan ah but in the WNBA another girl can take her fake fingernails and stab them towards the eye of the woman carrying the lead the only reason they're flying private the only reason why they're drawing increased television ratings forget Whitlock for a second there's a bigger storm brewing in the WNBA player safety versus game intent it it's a tight RPP walk that's got everyone on edge what if the league solution ends up changing the game forever the WNBA is at a Crossroads and they've got a tough decision to make how do you keep the game
Fierce without putting your Stars in Danger it's like trying to have your cake and eat it too but in this case the cake is made of elbows and the frosting is bruised I mean that's clearly a foul which was called the question is will they call it unnecessary Kennedy Carter I I think that's going to be a playr one remember that hit on Caitlyn Clark well it turns out that was just the tip of the iceberg the league is scrambling to figure out how to handle these situations and get this they didn't even call a
foul when it happened can you believe it a star player takes a hit to the eye and the refs just let it slide it's like they were watching a different game or something bigger that was a bush league play and it needs to be addressed that was a flagrant fou that was unnecessary flagrant anything deemed to be unnecessary now here's where it gets really interesting Carrington should be suspended it's criminal that some people are calling for Carrington to face some serious consequences we're talking about fines suspensions and the whole nine yards I I I assume
I mean are you kidding did her hand catch a cramp look at what her fingers and hands this is intentional and so I just assume that all the social justice uh racial Justice Warrior people would be up in arms and be like hey we got to call balls and Strikes here man this certainly looks racist and so I I had the team I was like hey uh tell me what ESPN says about this is there a conversation going on at ESPN Fox Sports about hey uh some uh D Carrington has to be suspended but here's
the million-dollar question if they crack down too hard are we going to end up with a watered down version of the game we love one commentator put it perfectly if they come down too hard on physical play are we going to see a watered down version of the game we love it's a valid concern right we all want to see intense competitive basketball but at what cost you have to have an enforcer this has been the tradition in sports when you have a star this big that people are jealous of and people are angry at
this is tell in hockey they used to try to beat up Wayne Gretzky white guy playing against a bunch of other white guys but they knew if they could rough him up they could take the Edmonton Oilers out of their game and so they had a guy named Dave zinko who would come in and fight Gretzky's fight and make sure people pay the price for playing rough with Wayne Gretzky that's what you have to have here in the WNBA and it needs to be a black girl that has Caitlyn's back cuz if it's a white
girl it's going to turn into a little race thing and the next thing you know all the race baiters at ESPN will turn it into something that it's not that there's a tradition of this in sport so what's the solution well some folks are throwing around a wild idea introducing enforcers to the WNBA yeah you heard that right like in hocke where you've got Players whose job is basically to protect the Stars can you imagine and starting at the enforcer position hey man your meal ticket is under constant attack there's been dirty plays all season
and again I've admit it some of them have been exaggerated it's just typical rough play with girl but there are some that it's just been dirty and DJ is one of these people that has a real problem with Caitlyn Clark but here's the thing this isn't just about Caitlyn Clark it's about the future of the entire league as one commentator put it they got to protect Caitlyn they got to protect their meal ticket she's the meal ticket Zach she's the Golden Goose she's the savior of the leag she's why there's eyeballs she's why the ratings
are up she's why these NBA arenas are being sold out she's why merch is being sold you have to protect your Golden Goose you have these women it's not just about player safety it's about the economic future of the WNBA these star players are the ones who bring in the fans the sponsorships the big bucks if they're getting knocked around left and right what's that going to do to the League's bottom line and let's not forget about the fans we tune in to see amazing athletes at the top of their game not to watch them
struggle after taking a hit the WNBA needs to find a way to keep the excitement high without turning every game into a WWE match so what's the WNBA going to do whatever they decide it's going to set a precedent we could be looking at a whole new era of women's basketball maybe we'll see stricter rules maybe we'll see enforcers or maybe they'll come up with something totally out of left field there is a there is a sentiment amongst some of we've been here doing this we built this and all the credit is going to her
I don't think all the credit is going to her though so what's this whole Caitlyn Clark situation really mean for women's basketball it's not just about one player or one game anymore this is about the future of the entire WNBA we've seen the hit the Fallout and all the drama that followed now the League's got to make some tough choices how do they keep their Stars safe without turning the game into a snooze Fest it's like trying to have your cake and eat it too but this Cake's made of elbows and the frostings bruises this
expansion they're drunk on Caitlyn Clark kin has them drunk and thinking hey we can now expand and that's B I think the rosters are 12 they're going to add 36 more roster spots to the WNBA this is a mistake I watched the WNBA Caitlyn Clark is great there's a few other players that are great but there's a lot of bad players in the WNBA and you start spreading this out I mean just look at the stimulus package Caitlyn Clark is forget Donald Trump she's already creating black jobs oh my God here's the million dooll question
how should the WNBA handle this mess they need to protect players like Clark but they also need to keep the fans coming back for more what do you think should they crack down hard on rough play or is that going to water down the game we love keep watching cuz this story is far from over